Dimensions let you tag vouchers and invoices with extra information – for example department, project or a custom category – so you can filter and report across your accounts.
Which dimension types are available?
Catacloud has four types of dimensions:
Department – built-in dimension type. Set up under Administration → Departments.
Project – add-on module. Active projects are available as dimensions when the project module is enabled.
Product – products from the product register can be used as a dimension on vouchers and invoices.
Custom dimensions – you create the dimension names and values yourself. Set up under Administration → Accounting → Custom dimensions tab.
All four types can be applied to vouchers and invoices, both at the top level and per line.
Setting up custom dimensions
Go to Administration → Accounting → Custom dimensions tab.
Click New dimension and give it a name (e.g. "Team fund" or "Funding source").
Add values (sub-dimensions) within the new dimension – for example "J33", "J15", "A-team".
Save. The dimension is now available on vouchers and invoices.
Tip: You can organise the values hierarchically with parent and child categories. Remember to select the correct sub-dimension – selecting only the top level is not enough.
Dimensions on customer invoices
The dimension field is not visible by default. To enable it:
Open or create a customer invoice.
Turn on the More choices toggle in the top right of the form.
Two dimension fields now appear:
Dimension (top level) – a field at invoice level, just below the other invoice details. A value selected here is automatically copied to all product lines.
Select dimension (per product line) – a separate field under each product line, where you can override the top-level dimension for that specific line.
Select the dimension value you want in one or both fields.
Tip: Use the top-level dimension when the whole invoice belongs to the same department or project. Use the per-line dimension when different lines should be coded to different departments or projects.
Dimensions on supplier invoices and advanced vouchers
Supplier invoices and advanced vouchers have no top-level dimension field that applies to all lines. Here, the dimension is set per posting line:
Open or create a supplier invoice or an advanced voucher.
Turn on the More choices toggle in the top right of the form.
A Select dimension field now appears below each posting line.
Click the field on the relevant line and select the dimension value you want from the list.
If the voucher has several posting lines, you must set the dimension on each line separately.
Required dimension per account
You can make a specific dimension required at posting level – meaning the system forces the user to select a dimension value every time they post to a specific account. This is useful for cost accounts where you always want to make sure that, for example, department or project is recorded.
You can also set a preselected dimension per account, so that a specific value is suggested automatically when posting – but can still be overridden.
Both settings are made on the individual account in the chart of accounts.
Note: A required or preselected dimension on the bank account is not applied to automatically posted payments of supplier invoices. See "Can I change a dimension after posting?" below.
See Creating or editing an account in the chart of accounts for instructions.
Deactivating or restructuring dimensions
If you no longer need a custom dimension – for example because you have created a new list of cost centres – you can set it to inactive.
Go to Administration → Accounting → Custom dimensions tab.
Click Set to inactive (the icon with a cross) on the dimension's row.
Good to know:
If you set a parent dimension to inactive, all values under it become inactive too. The same applies when you activate it again.
Inactive dimensions cannot be selected on new vouchers and invoices. Vouchers already posted with them keep the dimension.
To see inactive dimensions, choose Included (inactive) in the filter at the top right. Click Set to active (the undo icon) to activate a dimension again.
Tip: If the dimension is preselected on one or more accounts in the chart of accounts, replace or remove it under Standard dimension on the account before you set it to inactive.
Who can add and change dimensions?
Access to add and change dimensions is controlled by user permissions. A user must have permission to edit dimensions to select or change values on vouchers. Access is set under Administration → Users → [username] → Permissions.
Note: Access to add dimensions is not the same as access to the project module. If a user needs to use projects as a dimension, they must have access to both.
Reporting on dimensions
Once dimensions have been applied to vouchers, you can filter reports on them. Go to, for example, Accounting → Reports and use the dimension/department filter to narrow the report to one department, one project or one custom dimension.
Can I change a dimension after posting?
Yes, on vouchers you posted yourself. On supplier invoices, advanced vouchers, opening balances and customs declarations you can change department, project, product, custom dimensions and description after the voucher has been posted. Open the voucher, choose the correct dimension on the posting line and save. The voucher is updated directly – it is not reversed, and no correction entries appear in the general ledger.
This also works when the period is locked for accounting, VAT or bank. Only these fields are then open, and you see the message "You can only change the description, department, project, product and dimensions."
If you change the date, amount, account or VAT code, the voucher is still reversed and posted again – and the period must be open.
Exception – vouchers created automatically: Vouchers from the invoicing module (outgoing invoices and subscription invoices), automatically posted payments, bank reconciliation and year-end closing cannot be changed in the voucher window.
Outgoing invoice with the wrong dimension: Credit the invoice and create a new one with the correct dimension. See Partially crediting an invoice.
Payment of a supplier invoice: If the payment was posted automatically, you see the note "Automatic posted payment can not be changed" on the voucher. Such payments currently cannot be given a dimension – neither when they are posted nor afterwards. You can add a dimension to incoming payments from customers.
How to get the payment of a supplier invoice on the correct dimension: Post a separate advanced voucher that moves the amount on the bank account.
Create an advanced voucher with the same date as the payment.
Post the amount to the bank account (e.g. 1920) on one line, with the dimension the amount should belong to.
Post the same amount on the opposite side of the same bank account on a new line, without a dimension (or with the dimension the amount should be moved from).
Post the voucher.
The balance on the bank account does not change, but the amount shows on the correct department, project or dimension in the reports.
When should you contact us?
Can't find the dimension field? Check that the More choices toggle is turned on and that the user has the correct permissions (see "Who can add and change dimensions?").
Is a dimension you set up missing? Check whether it has been set to inactive (see "Deactivating or restructuring dimensions"), then try refreshing the page (Ctrl+Shift+R / Cmd+Shift+R).
Can't change the dimension on a posted voucher? Check whether the voucher was created automatically (from invoicing, bank or year-end closing) – see "Can I change a dimension after posting?" for what you can do.
Other questions about setting up or reporting on dimensions? Contact us in the chat or at [email protected], and include the client and which dimension type it concerns.